Natural fun: Fort Collins' Natural Areas Department turns 20

Nov. 10, 2012

David Hollerbach rides his mountain bike in Maxwell Natural Area on Wednesday. This month is the 20-year anniversary of the city of Fort Collins Natural Areas Department. / V. Richard Haro/The Coloradoan

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The morning sun lights up a log lying in the water at Dixon Reservoir in Pineridge Natural Area on Wednesday. This month is the 20-year anniversary of the city of Fort Collins Natural Areas Department. / V. Richard Haro/The Coloradoan

Natural Areas Information

• Before heading out to a city of Fort Collins natural areas trail or natural area, check trail conditions at www.fcgov.com/naturalareas/status.php. Closures are posted here. • For nonemergency situations such as reporting incidents and questions regarding regulations at Fort Collins natural areas, call a ranger at (970) 416-2147. • Information: www.fcgov.com/naturalareas/ or (970) 416-2815.

Timeline: 20 years of natural areas

1973 and 1984: Fort Collins funded land acquisitions along the foothills and Poudre River, as well as early natural areas and open space activities. 1992: Citizen-initiated 1/4-cent sales tax ballot measure was approved by voters to provide funds for the newly created natural areas plan to conserve and maintain natural areas for five years. 1995: Larimer County voters passed a citizen-initiated 1/4-cent sales tax for open space. Revenues were distributed to the cities and towns based on population, which supported Fort Collins natural areas operations and maintenance until 2003. 1997: Natural areas and trails funding was extended through the 2005 Building Community Choices tax measure. 1999: Larimer County voters extended funding for open space and natural areas until 2018. 2002: Fort Collins voters extended natural areas funding until 2030 with the citizen-initiated Open Space Yes! ballot measure. The tax focuses on acquiring and maintaining natural areas, regional land conservation and conserving community separators. 2012: The Natural Areas Department has conserved 42,000 acres and actively manages 35,000 acres of natural areas.

The morning sun lights frost on plants at Pineridge Natural Area on Wednesday. This month is the 20-year anniversary of the city of Fort Collins Natural Areas Department. / V. Richard Haro/The Coloradoan

Peter Streby of Fort Collins rides his bicycle in Maxwell Natural Area on Wednesday. This month is the 20-year anniversary of the city of Fort Collins Natural Areas Department. / V. Richard Haro/The Coloradoan

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From bird watching at the wetlands of Fossil Creek Reservoir to mountain biking around the grassy meadows and stunning red rock cliffs of Bobcat Ridge, the city of Fort Collins natural areas have provided users the opportunity to connect with nature right in our backyard.

Grandpas teach their grandchildren how to fish at McMurray and North Shields ponds. The trails at Pineridge make great walking paths for dogs. Runners train for local races on the hills of Coyote Ridge and the 6.8-mile Foothills Trail. Wildflower lovers take in the beautiful scenery of yellow, purple and blue wildflowers on the prairie landscape of Cathy Fromme Prairie.

Twenty years ago this month, a citizen-initiated ballot measure was approved by voters in Fort Collins to help make these recreational open spaces possible with the creation of the Natural Areas Department. Today, the department has strategically preserved and protected 42,000 acres of land and actively manages 35,000 acres of natural areas at 42 sites from the Wyoming border to the open spaces between Fort Collins and Loveland.

In celebration of the Natural Areas Department’s 20-year anniversary, Mayor Karen Weitkunat declared a proclamation at Tuesday’s City Council meeting as November 2012 to November 2013 the Year of the Natural Areas.

“Natural areas and conserved land are a valuable resource, vital to the health and well-being of the citizens of Fort Collins and the residents of Colorado and the city of Fort Collins seeks to connect its citizens with the many ways that natural areas help to make this a world-class community,” Weitkanut said.

In years past, the city reported 3.7 million annual visits to natural areas in Fort Collins, by about 47,000 different people. In the Year of the Natural Areas, the department is challenging Fort Collins residents to get outdoors to a natural area 20 times, or visit 20 different natural areas from now until November 2013.

Can you do it?

To help, here’s a guide to some of the most popular natural areas in Fort Collins. Where to go. What to see. What to do. Go explore.

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PINERIDGE

Where: Parking lots on Larimer County Road 42C approximately one-quarter mile south of Hughes Stadium and at the west end of Horsetooth Road.

Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily

Pets: Yes, on a leash

Fee: Free

Why go: Mountain bikers to anglers to dog walkers can enjoy one of the original open areas, acquired in 1976. There’s a nearby community park, dog park, Dixon Reservoir, forest, short-grass prairie and natural surface bike trails. Canoe on the reservoir where pelicans, ducks and Canada geese call home. You can start a bike ride or run on the 6.8-mile Foothills Trail, which connects Pineridge, Maxwell and Reservoir Ridge natural areas.

COYOTE RIDGE

Where: Parking lot on west side of Taft Hill Road approximately three miles south of Harmony Road (about one mile south of the Larimer County Landfill). There are five designated horse trailer parking spots available.

Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily

Pets: Not allowed

Fee: Free

Why go: A high desert habitat, Coyote Ridge showcases the vast diversity in the Fort Collins landscape. You can expect to see mule deer and coyotes, and sometimes mountain lions, bears and rattlesnakes. Rabbitbrush, mountain mahogany and three-leaf sumac provide habitat for songbirds, lizards, rabbits, deer mice and foxes. There are 2.3 miles of natural surface trails with an elevation gain of about 600 feet. The Coyote Ridge Trail connects to Larimer County’s Rimrock Open Space and the Blue Sky Trail, making Coyote Ridge an optimal spot for people to shuttle vehicles to turn a short trail into a long excursion.

BOBCAT RIDGE

Where: 10184 W. County Road 32C, Loveland. Take Harmony Road west, which turns into CR 38 E. Follow CR 38 E to Masonville. Go left (south) at the Masonville Mercantile onto CR 27. Follow CR 27 about one mile to CR 32 C. Head west about one mile to the Bobcat Ridge parking lot.

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Hours: Dawn to dusk, daily

Pets: Not allowed

Fee: Free

Why go: Longer hiking and biking trails. Bobcat Ridge features the Valley Loop (4-mile loop); Ginny Trail (5.4 miles); D.R. Trail (3.4 miles); Powerline Road (1.5 miles); and Eden Valley Spur (1.3 miles), creating a diverse system of trails for hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding. Historians will enjoy checking out the several historic homesteads that dot the landscape. Speaking of the landscape, the grassy valley is gorgeous as you look up to the foothills and red rock cliffs and walk through the ponderosa pines. Wildlife includes elk, wild turkey and mountain lions.

FOSSIL CREEK RESERVOIR

Where: Carpenter Road/Larimer County Road 32, approximately one mile west of Interstate 25, or two miles east of Timberline on the north side of Carpenter Road.

Hours: Dawn to dusk, daily

Pets: Not allowed

Fee: Free

Why go: To watch the birds. Fossil Creek Reservoir Regional Open Space is designated an Important Bird Area by the National Audubon Society, providing a crucial habitat to bald eagles in the winter and other types of raptors, and many species of shorebirds, songbirds and waterfowl. For the past eight years, Larimer County has hosted the Northern Colorado Birding Fair with hands-on birding activities, presentations and a clinic. In winter, you can take in the up to 40 bald eagles that can be seen here either on your own or on guided outings through the city. Bring your camera and binoculars to spot the birds and enjoy the silence and peacefulness in this rolling prairie and wetlands landscape.

SOAPSTONE PRAIRIE

Where: Soapstone Prairie is 25 miles north of Fort Collins. From Fort Collins, take Colorado Highway 1/Terry Lake Road to County Road 15 north (toward Waverly). From CR 15, turn north onto Rawhide Flats Road and continue north to the entrance station.

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Hours: Dawn to dusk, March 1-Dec. 1. Soapstone Prairie is closed December, January and February.

Pets: Not allowed

Fee: Free

Why go: Learn your history. There is an extensive and diverse human history at Soapstone Prairie, from Paleo Indians of the Ice Age to Native American groups to more than a century of homesteaders and cattle and sheep ranchers. The most famous cultural site at Soapstone Prairie is the Lindenmeier archeological site, a National Historic Landmark most famous for its Folsom findings. Excavations in the 1930s found needles, beads and stone tools, making the Lindenmeier site the most extensive Folsom culture campsite yet found. With 28 square miles of wide open vistas, pristine grasslands and miles of trail, Soapstone Prairie is a remote, backcountry area.

Why go: Bring your fishing pole. Anglers have seven former gravel mine ponds to choose from, all stocked by the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife with warm-water species (usually largemouth bass, crappie and channel catfish). Riverbend Ponds also offers a lot of diversity with a stretch of the Poudre River, the seven ponds and wetlands. The wetlands are a bird paradise, featuring more than 200 species of birds that feed, rest, nest and migrate through, including great blue herons, a wide variety of ducks and American white pelicans. With several different ways to access Riverbend Ponds, the area is fit for dog walking with several flat trails with loop options. Also take the kids to check out self-guided interpretive trail.